The Charge Against Johnny Cade

What Happened During the Crime

Circumstances that lead to up to the Crime Scene

Related Cases

• King v. State
• Court of Special Appeals upholds Tetso second-degree murder conviction Dennis Tetso

Johnny and Ponyboy are loitering in the park as a Blue Mustang pulls over. Members of the Social Group Robert, Randy, David and two unknowns get out of the vehicle. They proceed to the rituals of gang “smack talk”. The Soc David grabs hold of Ponyboy and dunks his head under the water in the fountain. Ponyboy loses consciousness Johnny pulls out his switchblade and stabs and kills Robert Sheldon. The other Socs retreat swiftly.

King v. State:

"A person acts recklessly when he is aware of and consciously disregards a substantial and unjustifiable risk. The defendant’s acts were imminently dangerous and presented a very high or grave risk of death to others. The defendant did not, as evidence was presented, consciously intend to cause the death of the victim. Firing a pistol at a vehicle without excuse or provocation is sufficient to produce the effect of a great risk of death to others and such conduct manifest extreme indifference to human life generally."

"Aggression occurs in response to a single, massive assault on their identity

Something happens that is potently offensive, absolutely intolerable, and which strips them of all sense of personal power

The essence of their existence (or their manhood) will be destroyed if they do not respond

Violence is predictable & preventable

Easily frustrated, limited or poor impulse control

Self-defense is another very common reason of killing someone. If you are alone walking on the street and someone tries to hurt you for getting away with your purse or wallet, then if you attack that person for your protection and for protecting your property, then this is called self-defense. In the eyes of the law, self-defense is a valid and just thing to do. But in the process of self-defense you may even kill that person trying to rob you or kill you. Courts in our country handle such cases on a weekly basis. There are a lot of cases when people have been killed because of self-defense. Self-defense is not natural only on the streets, but also, in the domestic life, for instance, if you are being tortured by your mother-in-law or husband. Self-defense can be in any form and anywhere."

Tetso v. Special Appeals:

Johnny's Background

"June 05, 2012|By Jessica Anderson, The Baltimore Sun

The Maryland Court of Special Appeals upheld a Baltimore County man's conviction in the death of his wife who went missing the night she was supposed to go to a Motley Crue concert in Washington and whose body was never found.

Dennis J. Tetso, 47, who was found guilty of second-degree murder in the presumed death of Tracey Leigh Gardner, whom he killed, lost his appeal that argued a lack of insufficient evidence to support conviction for second-degree murder.

Although Gardner's body was never recovered, the court's opinion agreed with the state's arguments that Gardner's disappearance and lack of contact with family and friends and use of credit cards was enough to show that Gardner was dead.

The opinion said "the facts, including those evidencing appellant's motive, intent, and conduct, are more than sufficient to support a conviction for second-degree murder."

Gardner vanished in March 2005; it was several years before Tetso was charged in Gardner's death.

Baltimore County Circuit Judge Patrick Cavanaugh sentenced Tetso in 2010 to 30 years in prison with all but 18 years suspended followed by five years of supervised probation."

According to Pony, Johnny looks like "a little dark puppy that has been kicked too many times and is lost in a crowd of strangers."

His parents physically and verbally abuse him.

When his parents don't physically or verbally abuse him, they ignore him.

Johnny can stay away from home for long periods of time and nobody will seem to notice.

He was brutally beaten by the Soc last spring and now lives in constant fear of them.

Johnny considered suicide, but never tried because he always had the gang for support.

Even though he had a rough past, he never mistreated others.Johnny even stood up to his idol, Dally, when he wouldn't leave two girls alone. The girls were Socs and their boyfriends were the people who beat up Johnny.

WHAT IS SECOND DEGREE MURDER?

Court Case

JOHNNY CADE: HOODLUM,CRIMINAL and MURDERER

Second degree murder is an unpremeditated kiling, resulting from an assault in which death or the victim was a distinct possibility.

Second degree murder is different from first degree murder, which is intentionally killing, or results from a vicious crime

Friends and accomplices

Deadly/ Non Deadly Force

Dallas Winston: provided gun, money, and place to hide

Ponyboy Curtis: assisted in escape

Darell Curtis, Sodapop Curtis, Keith (Two-Bit) Matthews, Steve Randall

Motive

Under the reasonableness standard, people can use deadly force in defense of others only its the only option

In some situations, force may be allowed without deadly force being allowed.

In most cases, the law wouldn’t allow the use of deadly force to defend someone from a simple assault.

Excessive force is the use of force greater than that which a reasonable and prudent law enforcement officer would use under the circumstances is generally considered to be excessive.

Excessive- going beyond the usual, necessary, or proper limit or degree; characterized by excess

A couple months before the murder, Bob had seriously injured Johnny when he jumped him in a common greaser hangout spot; The Lot. According to Ponyboy, Johnny "Would kill the next person who jumped him. Nobody was ever going to beat him like that again. Not over his dead body..."

Information about the Greasers

The Charges Against Johnny Cade

GUILTY

The Greasers were already accustomed to getting jumped by Socs. Johnny had already been encountered with this type type of violence. His actions were irrational and unjust. He also had a motive to kill any Soc who tried to hurt him; making him guilty of second degree murder.

MR. CADE HAS BEEN CHARGED FOR THE FOLLOWING: SECOND DEGREE MURDER, SHOPLIFTING, POSSESSION OF ILLEGAL WEAPON (SWITCHBLADE), PURCHASE OF TOBACCO BELOW AGE 19.

Shoplifting

-A popular term used for theft of goods from a retail establishment

-"Shoplifting is a type of larceny, which simply means taking the property of someone else without their permission, and with the intent to permanently deprive the owner of the property taken." - See more at: http://criminal.findlaw.com/criminal-charges/shoplifting.html#sthash.esM7fh4Y.dpuf

Defense of Others

Court Case by:

Ronaldo Paz, Maria Nakadar, Christian Prashad,Anita Palackal Ibrahima Diallo, Teodora Mitov, Leonardo Garcia and Chabeli Martinez

These state laws vary widely, but generally, shoplifting offenses includes two elements:

1. willfully concealing or taking possession of items being offered for sale; and

2. the intent to deprive the items' rightful owner (typically the store) of possession of the items, without paying the purchase price.

See more at: http://criminal.findlaw.com/criminal- charges/shoplifting.html#sthash.4g7HU27y.dpuf

The defendant’s personal belief that force was necessary isn’t enough—the belief must also be objectively reasonable. In other words,

-the requirement is that the force used by the person is enough to STOP the threat

the defendant has to point to some evidence supporting it in order for the jury to consider it.

In some states a partial defense is allowed but the person isnt pled innocent but charged less

“Imperfect” defense of others is usually available only in homicide cases.

Underage Tobacco

Possession of an Illegal Weapon

DUTY to retreat

Special Relationship

Some states require that people try to retreat before they use force. But the duty to retreat may not apply in a person’s home or workplace in even those states.

Synar Amendment to the Alcohol, Drug Abuse, and Mental Health Administration Reorganization Act requires states to: Enact laws prohibiting the sale and distribution of tobacco products to minors Enforce these laws in a way that can reasonably be expected to reduce the availability of tobacco products to youth under the age of 18 Conduct random, unannounced inspections of tobacco outlets Report annual findings to the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services

1996 – Regulations Restricting the Sale and Distribution of Cigarettes and Smokeless Tobacco to Protect Children and Adolescents Asserts jurisdiction over tobacco products, issuing this final rule restricting the sale and distribution of cigarettes and smokeless tobacco to protect youth. ( http://betobaccofree.hhs.gov/laws/ ) Johnny Cade is an under aged smoker with illegal possession of tobacco.

Private Ownership = Refers to the legality of merely owning a switchblade kept exclusively in the home. Sale = The legality of merchants and private citizens offering switchblades for sale or selling them. Usually includes any transfer of ownership, even gifts. Note that such laws almost always only affect the seller; no state law affects the buyer of such a transaction. Open Carry: legality of carrying a switchblade unconcealed and in plain view of others. Concealed Carry: legality of carrying a switchblade in a concealed manner on one's person (or most of the time, in a car). ( http://weaponlaws.wikidot.com/us-switchblade-laws ) These are all illegal in most states, and Johnny Cade ignores all of the regulations. And the switchblade is two big for most states at a whooping six inches.

A few states require that the defendant have some special relationship with the person he was protecting, such as being related by blood or marriage. But most states allow the use of force to protect any third person if the circumstances are right.

Eye of The Tiger